Shagrat
|name = Shagrat|kingdom = Animalia|phylum = Chordata|class = Mammalia|order = Rodentia}} The '''shagrat' is a species of herd-living, sheep-sized rodent native to the North European Ice of 5 million AD. It is the tundra's largest land animal. Evolution .]] The shagrat evolved from the Alpine marmot, but as far as their basic body plan goes, they have not changed much from their ancestors. They are three times larger than marmots as an adaptation against the cold, as larger animals with bigger surface area relative to volume lose less body heat, and have developed typical polar adaptations such as thicker fur and blubber. As marmots are burrowing animals, the shagrat was already well adapted for digging. Biology The shagrat generally resembles its marmot ancestor, and is also very similar to the South American capybara, the largest modern rodent. It is covered with long, shaggy, dark brown fur all over its body, and is very stocky and thickset. Its legs are short and stocky, and its ears are small to prevent heat loss. They retain the large chisel teeth of their ancestors, and have large claws on the feet of their powerful forearms. The shagrats coat is composed of two layers of fur; the dense layer of underfur traps warm air next to the body for insulation, whilst long, waterproof, hollow and air-filled guard hairs keep the underfur dry. This combination heavily insulates the shagrat against the ice age winter, and also allows it to briefly enter cold water without being soaked or chilled. Female shagrats give birth in early spring, following a gestation period which lasts throughout the winter. They are resilient against blizzards, and can survive in temperatures as low as as low as -50. Behaviour Shagrats are social animals which live together in herds of around a dozen animals, centred around a dominant bull male. After the females give birth in the early spring, about a third of a herd will consist of youngsters. In particularly cold weather, members of the herd will huddle together for warmth. If one member of the herd smells danger, it barks a warning and the whole herd leaps to attention. An unsettled herd assembles in an open space and, instinctively, the youngsters huddle in the middle. The adults surround them in a defensive formation, all facing outwards. When a predator is present, the shagrats bunch up even more closely, narrowing their eyes and baring their teeth, hissing in threat. The herds spend the winter at the northern edge of the birch and conifer forests south of the tundra, around the area where the French coast once was. They migrate back to the edge of the ice sheet following the end of the winter, to reach their summer grazing grounds. When searching for food after returning to the open tundra, shagrat herds spread out across meadows and root about, pushing rocks over with their strong forelegs to reveal the soil beneath. The big claws on their forefeet dig into the soil to reach underground grass stems and the roots of heather and willow. They must travel massive distances each day in order to find enough food to sustain them. Ecology Shagrats feed on various types of tundra grasses and cold-adapted shrubs, and are themselves the principal prey item of the snowstalker. When in groups they are well-defended against predators by their numbers and comparatively large size, but animals like the snowstalker can pick off lost, injured, young, or elderly individuals; or use blizzards as cover to ambush herds. Appearances In the documentary In "Return of the Ice", a shagrat herd searching for grazable areas in the winter is ambushed during a blizzard by a female snowstalker, which continues to follow her injured victim until it bleeds to death. Later, during the autumn, a shagrat is chased back to the snowstalkers lair in order for her cubs to practice hunting. Although the cubs surround it and make feints at it, it is the mother snowstalker who ends up having to kill it. In the manga In Chapter I, "North European Icefields," a snowstalker mother twice attacks a herd of shagrats, and is injured both times when the herd's bull male charges and headbutts her. During the first hunt she manages to fatally wound and later eat a young shagrat, but the second hunt leaves her badly injured and unable to escape a sudden avalanche, which kills her, while the shagrats escape. After her death, her young cub follows the trail of the shagrat she had injured. In the animated series Major appearances A herd of shagrats including one named Arb appears in "De-Tour de France", where they believe the Time Flyer may be a predator. Arb becomes seperated from the rest of the herd during a blizzard, and is befriended by Ethan after fleeing from a snowstalker. Minor appearances A herd of shagrats is disturbed by the Time Flyer in "Queen of the Squibbons, Part 2" when it accidentally arrives in 5 million AD. List of appearances *''The Future Is Wild '' **1x01. Welcome to the Future **1x02. Return of the Ice **''The Future Is Wild'' (US) *''The Future Is Wild: A Natural History of the Future'' *''The Future is Wild'' manga **01. North European Icefield *''The Future Is Wild'' animated series **1x12. De-Tour de France **1x25. Queen of the Squibbons, Part 2 (cameo) *''The Future Is Wild: The Living Book'' Notes *The shagrat was the first organism presented in The Future Is Wild. Gallery Documentary= FIW 1x2 Shagrat sniffing.png FIW 1x2 Shagrat herd 2.png FIW 1x2 Shagrats.png FIW 1x2 Shagrats go into snowstorm.png FIW 1x2 Shagrat herd.png FIW_1x2_Shagrats digging.png FIW 1x2 Snowstalker kill.png FIW_1x2_Shagrat_herd_by_marsh.png FIW_1x2_Shagrat_herd_in_autumn.png FIW 1x2 Young snowstalkers learning.png FIW 1x2 Shagrat looking.png FIW 1x2 Shagrat surrounded.png FIW 1x2 Shagrat eaten.png |-|Promotional= Shagrats-600px.jpg Shagrat banner.png 5Mio_North_European_Ice.jpg In other languages References Navigation Category:Animals Category:Mammals Category:Rodents Category:Organisms of 5 million AD Category:Organisms of Europe Category:Organisms of the North European Ice Category:5 million AD